Elizabeth Kucinich named policy chief for food safety group

The center won a recent court victory in its challenge of the administration’s delays in implementing the landmark Food Safety Modernization Act. But much work remains to see the law carried out, Kucinich said.

“It is time for this dedicated and diverse movement to gather the wagons. The food movement and all our gains are under threat,” Kucinich said in a statement. “Now more than ever, we must speak with a unified voice to amplify our message.”

Andrew Kimbrell, the center’s executive director, also pointed to threats posed by pesticides used on fruits and vegetables.

“The food movement is under attack,” Kimbrell said. “Elizabeth Kucinich comes to us at a time of ultimate need. The chemical companies have their sights aimed squarely at the regulatory safeguards that protect our health. Elizabeth’s knowledge and skills as an organizer and advocate will help ensure that we in the food movement are ready and able to fight back.”

The English-born Kucinich has worked on poverty issues in India, Tanzania and the United Kingdom. She came to the United States to work on monetary policy reform and later served as a congressional liaison to a former president of the United Nations General Assembly.

She is also a former government affairs director for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and serves on the boards of several groups, including actor Sean Penn’s Haitian relief organization.